Liquid-vibrating apparatus



Dec. 16, 1958 w. CAMP LIQUID-VIBRATING APPARATUS Filed March '7, 1955 INVENTOR.

LEON W. CAMP ATTORNEY rroUrn-vrnnArrNG APPARATUS Leon W. Camp, Glendale, Calif., assignor to Bendix Aviation Corporation, North Hollywood, (Jalifi, a corporation of Delaware Application March 7, 1955, Serial No. 492,483

11 Claims. (Cl. 259-1) This invention relates to the generation of sonic or ultrasonic vibrations in liquids and is particularly useful for producing such vibrations in a liquid to enhance its cleaning or treating effect on a body in contact therewith.

An object of the invention is to provide a commercially practicable, eflicient liquid-vibrating apparatus that is not excessive in cost.

Another object is to provide such an apparatus employing a mechanical vibrator element which can be easily removed and replaced for servicing.

In order to impart a large amount of vibratory energy to a body of water or other liquid at sonic or ultrasonic frequencies, it is most practicable to employ an array of relatively small vibrating faces, each independently driven by an elec'trornechanically responsive driver which may be a magnetostriction element in the field of a coil carrying alternating current of the desired frequency. The use of a large composite face area enables a reduction in the unit intensity of energy at the face below the value at which cavitation occurs. This increases the life of the faces and the efficiency of energy transfer. Nevertheless, the faces do deteriorate, and replacement or repairs are required at intervals.

A feature of the present invention is a vibrator of such construction that it extends through (and seals with) a supporting wall with a slip connection, and can be removed or installed by simply pulling it out or pushing it in.

Another feature is the supporting of the energizing coil independently of the vibrator, so that removing or installing a vibrator does not involve removal or installation of a coil with the attendant breaking or making of electrical connections thereto.

Another feature is the use of a rubber ring in the slip connection for both resiliently supporting the vibrator from the Wall and effecting a seal therewith.

Another feature is a vibrator having a working face of greater area than that of the slip connection portion and of polygonal shape such that the faces of an array of such vibrators approximate a continuous, composite face.

Other more specific objects and features of the invention will appear from the description to follow with reference to the drawing, in which:

Fig. 1 is a vertical section through a tank incorporating liquid-vibrating apparatus in accordance with the invention, the section being taken in the plane 1-1 of Fig. 2.

Fig. 2 is a vertical section at right angles to the section of Fig. 1 and taken in the plane 11-11 of Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is a large detail view, partly in section, taken in the plane III-4H of Fig. 2.

Fig. 4 is an enlarged detail view taken in the plane iV-lV of Fig. 2.

Fig. 5 is a detail view taken in the plane V-V of Fig. 3.

Referring first to Figs. 1 and 2, there is shown a liquidcontainiug tank having side walls ltla, 10a and 10b, 1% and an upwardly concave cylindrically curved bot 2,864,5h2 Patented Dec. 16, 1958 tom wall 16c. As shown, the side walls 10a and 10b are extending substantially below the bottom wall 10c to pro vide a support for the whole assembly.

The bottom wall 10c supports an array of identical vibrator elements 11, one of which is shown in Fig. 3. Each vibrator element 11 comprises a head 11a having a flat outer working face, a piston element 11]), and a magnetostriction driver lie, all joined rigidly together.

The head 11a is on the liquid side of the wall 100, and its face is the active surface for imparting vibration to the water.

The piston element 11b is positioned within an orifice element 12 in the wall 10c. Element 11b consists, as shown, of a sleeve having a flange at its upper end and having a removable threaded flange 13 on its lower end which clamps against the wall 10c. A gasket 14 may be provided to prevent leakage between the wall 10c and the orifice element. The inner surface of the orifice element 12 is cylindrical and is of slightly larger diameter than the piston element 11b, the latter having an annular groove 15 therein containing a rubber O-ring 16 of such dimensions as to project beyond the groove and be compressed against the inner surface of the sleeve element 12 to support the peripheral surface of the piston element 1112 out of contact with the sleeve element 12, while at the same time providing a watertight seal to prevent leakage.

As clearly shown in Fig. 3, the base of the head 11a of each vibrator is slightly larger than the piston element 11b, and expands to substantially larger lateral dimensions at the outer end of the head, so that adjacent heads can be closely spaced almost in contact while permitting substantial spacing between adjacent orifice elements 12. The heads 11 are preferably of regular polygonal shape (square in the example illustrated) so that the gaps between adjacent heads are narrow cracks, and the array of heads approximates a continuous liquid-vibrating surface.

The driver llc consists of a pair of U-shaped magnetostriction elements 18, each having a base portion 18a and two elongated parallel leg portions 18b. The two elements 13 are symmetrically positioned with respect to the axis of the piston element 11b, so that the four legs 18b are symmetrically disposed about the axis of the piston portion, as shown in Fig. 4.

One leg 18!) of each magnetostriction element 18 is energized by a coil 20, and the other leg is energized by a coil 21, the two coils being so connected to an energizing source as to generate magnetic fluxes opposite in direction at any given instant. An individual coil could be provided for each leg 18b, but it is more economical in a large array of vibrators, as shown in Figs. 1 and 2, to energize all of the arms 18]) in a single row with a single coil 20, and energize all of the other legs 18b of one row of elements with a single separate coil 21, as shown in Fig. 2. The coils 20 and 21 are positioned out of physical contact with their associated legs 18b and are separately supported. Thus, as shown in Fig. 2, each coil 21 is secured to a strip 23 which is supported at its opposite ends from the downwardly extended portions 1012, 1012 of the tank. The strips 23 are provided with apertures through which the legs 18b extend.

It is necessary to polarize a magnetostriction vibrator. This may be done by superimposing direct current on the alternating current in the coils 20 and 21, or by providing a permanent magnet in the magnetic circuit of each magnetostriction unit 18. Such a magnet 24 is shown positioned between the opposite poles of the two MS elements 18 of each vibrator in Figs. 3 and 4. These magnets are supported in position by individual U clips 32 which clamp them to supporting strips 33, one of which is positioned back of each row of vibrators and anchored at its opposite ends to thewalls 10b, has a base portion 32a of insulatingmaterial to prevent the clip from forming with the strip 33 a closed loop circuit in which eddy currents could be induced.

With the construction described, any one of the vibrators 11 may be quickly removed for repair or replacement by simply pulling it out, the piston portion 1112 with the -ring 16 simply sliding out of the associated sleeve element 12. The coils 20 and 21 and magnets 24 remain in place.

By virtue of the cylindrical curvature of the composite vibrating face, the. intensity of vibration in the liquid is greatly intensified adjacent the focal line 30 so that cavitation may be produced in that region, for most powerful action on a body suspended in the liquid, without producing cavitation at the vibrator faces. The latter condition is to be avoided because of resulting rapid corrosion of the faces.

' The over-all length of each vibrator 11 is preferably a half wave length at the operating frequency, and a node occurs adjacent the piston element 111). t is not necessary that the node be exactly at the point of support, however, because the O-ring 16 permits longitudinal vibration of the piston element-relative to the sleeve element without material loss of energy.-

Although for the purpose of explaining the invention, a particular embodiment thereof has been shown and described, obvious modifications will occur to a person skilled in the art, and I do not desire to be limited to the exact details shown and described.

I claim:

1. Apparatus of the type described comprising: a wall constituting a liquid barrier and having an orifice element defining a cylindrical passage through said wall; an integral vibrator comprising a front liquid-vibrating head positioned on the liquid side of said wall, a rear electromechanically responsive driver positioned on'the other side of said wall, and a piston element'joining said head and driver and positioned within said orifice element in supported and sealing relation therewith; said driver being of smaller lateral dimensions than said piston element whereby said vibrator can be installed and removed by sliding it into and out of said orifice element from the said liquid side of said wall.

2. Apparatus according to claim 1 in which one of said elements has an annular groove therein and a rubber sealing ring in said groove projecting therefrom into engagement with the other of said elements and maintaining said elements out of direct contact with each other.

3. Apparatus according to claim 1 including a plurality of additional orifice elements and vibrators like said mentioned orifice element and vibrator all arranged in closely-spaced relation with the outer ends of adjacent liquid-vibrating heads approximately fiush with each other, said liquid-vibrating heads having larger lateral dimensions than said piston elements whereby the spacing between adjacent heads is less than the spacing between said passages through said wall.

4. Apparatus according to claim 3 in which said heads are of regular polygonal shape in cross-section and dimensioned to closely approach each other to approximate a continuous liquid-vibrating surface.

5. Apparatus according to claim 1 in which said electromechanically responsive driver comprises: an elongated rnagnetostriction element extending from said pisb. Each clip 32' ton element; an energizing coil in magnetizing relation to said magnetostriction element; and means supporting said coil independently of said magnetostriction element, whereby said vibrator can be removed or installed from the liquid side of said wall without disturbing said energizing coil. v V

6. Apparatus according to claim 1 in which said electromechanically responsive driver comprises a U-shaped magnetostriction element having a base joined to said piston element and two parallel legs extending away from said piston element; separate coils in magnetizing relation to said respective legs; and means supporting said coils independently of said magnetostriction element, whereby said vibrator can be removed orreplaced from said liquid side of said'wall without disturbing said energizing coil.

7. Apparatus according to claim 6 in which said legs extend beyond said coils; a permanent magnet positioned between the extended portions of said legs; and means supporting said magnet independently of said legs.

8. Apparatus according to claim 1 in which said electromechanically responsive driver comprises a pair of U shaped magnetostriction elements, each having a base joined to said piston element and two parallel legs extending away from said piston element, said two magnetostriction elements being juxtaposed to each other in parallel spaced relation with the four legs symmetrically disposed about the axis of said piston element; a pair of coils, one associated with one leg of each pair of magnetostriction elements and the other electromechanically associated with the other two legs of said two magnetostriction elements, said coils enclosing their associated legs but terminating short ofthe outer end portions of the legs; and a permanent magnet positioned between the opposite extended leg portions of both magnetostriction elements.

9. Apparatus according to claim 1 in which said liquidvibrating head is of larger lateral dimensions at its outer end than said piston element and expands gradually from its junction with the piston element toward said outer end.

10. Apparatus according to claim 5 including a plu rality ofv additional orifice elements and vibrators like said mentioned orifice element and vibrator all arranged with their magnetostriction elements in a row; said energizing coil being elongated in the direction of said row and in magnetizing relation with all the magnetostriction elements in said row. i

11. Apparatus according to claim 6 including a plurality of aditional orifice elements and/vibrators like said mentioned orifice element and vibrator, all arranged with the respective legs of said vibrators in two parallel rows, said coils being elongated in the direction of said rows with one of said coils in magnetizing relation to all the legs in. one row and the other coil in magnetizing relaion to all the legs in the other row.

' References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,768,429 Stoney June 24, 1930 2,498,990 Fryklund Feb. 28, 1950 2,543,818 Wilcox Mar. 6, 1951 2,578,505 Carlin Dec. 11, 1951 2,653,802 Bauerlein Sept. 29, 1953 

